The Soul Master
by sherlywherlylock
Summary: A new girl shows up in Death City. She seems normal, but what secrets hide her past? KidxOC, MakaxSoul. Prequel to A New Enemy. Rated T for some violence, and possibly some language.
1. Chapter 1

"Ready, Soul?"

These were the words Maka Albarn had spoken a hundred times, probably more, to her best friend and weapon partner, Soul Eater Evans. They had been in so many fights, so many battles, that the question- and its answer- seemed second-nature to both meister and weapon. With both teens glaring at the massive Kishin that stood in the darkening street, just a hundred feet in front of them, Soul changed into his weapon form, landing in Maka's white-gloved hands. As she gripped the handle of the scythe tightly (but not too tightly, or else Soul would complain again), a smile broke out on Maka's face.

This was the fun part.

With a shout, she ran toward the Kishin, her boots making a thunk with each step that hit the cobblestone street. As she advanced, the Kishin did the same, with a mighty roar that would have made the hairs on the arms of a normal girl stand on end with fear. The thing was huge, with gray-white skin that held the pallor of death in every pore, sharp teeth that dripped with saliva as it seemed to size up how it would like Maka cooked. Its eyes were an endless black that seemed to stare into Maka's soul- but she knew that wasn't possible. Even its claws were huge. Most were bigger than Maka was tall.

Maka cursed under her breath. With claws that big, it would be hard to get in under them and hit a vital part on the Kishin, killing it and providing a meal for Soul. As the Kishin began to swing at the meister, Maka found herself being forced backwards simply to avoid being sliced in half by the claws.

"I can't get close to it!" she yelled to Soul. They had been taught that communication with their partner was key in winning battles. Soul cursed under his breath. The only opening he could see was under the Kishin's arms, and even that would be difficult to get to. But all they could do was try.

"Try to get under its arms!" Soul yelled back to her. His eyes were on the Kishin's gleaming claws. "But watch out for the-"

"I know about the damn claws!" she yelled at him. They were her priority. If she could slice them off where they connected to the hands, the threat would be eliminated and she could easily kill it. Now, how to approach… the rooftops. She looked up as she dodged a blow from the Kishin and saw that if she could get to the rooftop, she would have an advantage and could perform a simple downward slash, taking off all the claws on one hand in a single slice. She leapt to dodge another slash and dove into an alley, falling into a flawless forward roll and coming up on her feet. Not stopping for an instant, she ran to and leapt onto the fire escape on the side of a building. Running onto the roof, she immediately made her way to the edge overlooking the section of street the Kishin was in. Eyeing its claws as it searched the alley for them, she tightened her grip on Soul and leapt off the roof toward the Kishin.

The Kishin looked at them and raised its hand.

Everything went wrong.

Soul clattered to the ground, spinning away from his meister's grip as she fell to the ground. Blood slowly stained the front of her jacket as she lay gasping on the cobblestones. The Kishin had hit her.

"MAKA!" Soul shouted, changing back to his human form. Every muscle in his body tensed as he watched her still form on the ground, as he saw the blood spreading across her body and making the front of her jacket damp. He had an internal panic attack as he ran to her side. Looking up at the Kishin, he saw it raise its claws again for the final strike. The final hit that would end Maka. With an anguished cry, he grabbed her and pulled her out of the way just as the Kishin's claws came down. Sparks flew as its claws made contact with the cobblestones, barely missing the pair. He picked her up and began to run with her, but another claw came down in his path, forcing him to stop on a dime and turn. He began to run in the opposite direction, only to have to dodge another claw. He was stuck. He dropped to his knees to avoid a claw slashing over his head and held Maka close to his body. This was it… this was the end for both of them. He watched as the Kishin's claws rose above them, gleaming in the moonlight, one claw stained with Maka's blood. Soul's heart thumped in his chest, pounding in his ears as he shielded Maka with his body. Squeezing his eyes shut, he waited for the pain to take over- for the final strike.

But it never came.

Soul heard a loud roar and opened his eyes, looking up to where the Kishin was supposed to be. He shifted his weight, still holding Maka close, and his eyes found the Kishin- stumbling back down the street, barely dodging a silver explosion of light next to its head. Its black eyes gleamed silver for just a moment, reflecting the light, then dimmed and turned back to their angry, vortex-like black. Soul jumped a bit as he heard another quiet twang off to his right, and looked up as another silver explosion forced the Kishin back another step. With a pounding heart and beads of sweat on his forehead, Soul looked into the alley to his right.

A teenage girl stood there. She was small and thin, her white shirt a bit ripped and dirty, but because she was shrouded in shadow, that was all that stood out. She stood her ground against the Kishin, firing again and again at it with a simple wooden bow. Each arrow she fired, however, Soul noticed was glowing silver at its tip. As she pulled back the bow, Soul's eyes went to the Kishin. After a split second, an arrow exploded right in its face, and it stumbled back into the long set of stairs the girl had backed it into. Stunned by her accuracy, Soul looked back at the girl, only to find her eyes already locked on his.

"Hide her somewhere safe," she said, voice surprisingly calm considering the position she was in, "and then get back over here. This bow isn't going to kill that thing by itself, I need a real weapon. Hurry!" Soul was shocked out of his stupor at her shout and nodded, scrambling up and running behind a building with Maka in his arms. He took off his jacket and laid it under her head as a pillow, then laid her down on the ground gently. Staring at her, he slowly reached up and stroked her cheek with his thumb- but only for a moment. Another boom from an arrow reminded him about the girl needing his help, so he kissed Maka's hand and ran off, back to the girl in the alley.

She had gained ground against the Kishin, still firing at it- but she was running out of arrows. He was surprised to see that she had gained any ground at all- and slightly jealous, but he pushed that out of his mind and ran to her.

"What do you need me to do?" he yelled over the explosions and the Kishin's frustrated roaring. The girl, still silhouetted by the street lanterns, looked over at him.

"Change into a weapon," she said. "I need a real weapon, or all three of us are probably going to die."

Soul raised a brow, looking confused as the girl shot another arrow at the Kishin. "But we've never even met before tonight," he argued. The Kishin slashed at them again, and both Soul and the girl leapt back to avoid its claws. The girl fired another arrow- she had only two more now- and it stumbled back. Soul panted, trying to finish his sentence. "Our soul wavelengths won't match-"

"Just trust me!" she suddenly shouted at him, sounding frustrated. "It'll be fine, and we don't have time to argue!" Groaning, Soul complied and transformed into a scythe, spinning in the air as he usually did when he transformed. The girl caught him, gripping him tightly, and Soul was shocked to find that nothing at all happened with their soul wavelengths to push them apart and keep them from defeating the Kishin.

Suddenly, Soul felt a rush of energy, similar to the feeling he got when Maka channeled her soul wavelength through him to strengthen them both. It was hot, but not burning- it was energizing. The feeling made him want to fight. To slice through the skin and bone of the Kishin roaring before them, to watch its carcass crash to the ground, and to consume the soul inside.

He was hungry.

The girl leapt forward, swing Soul around expertly. She ran to its leg, somehow managing to get underneath its claws, although Maka had been unable to do so. With a couple of deft leaps, she made it to the Kishin's hip bone, which jutted out from its side at an odd angle, providing a strangely shaped but convenient foothold for her. With just two slashes of the weapon, five claws fell to the ground, hitting the cobblestones with a strange clank. The Kishin roared in pain as its claws were sliced off, and the girl jumped again to avoid the other set of claws, this time landing on the Kishin's bony elbow. Before it could knock her off, she leapt to its shoulder. As Soul watched, he realized that she was in the perfect position to make a kill shot.

And that was exactly what she did.

With a yell from the girl, Soul's blade was sliced across the Kishin's neck, opening up a wide, red smile in the gray skin. She jumped off of its shoulder as the Kishin disintegrated, leaving only a black and red soul behind, which floated about four feet off the ground. Landing on her feet, she dove into a roll to soften the blow, coming up again on her feet and holding Soul behind her with one hand. Standing slowly, she turned to face the soul left behind by the Kishin.

"Go for it," she told Soul, tossing the scythe into the air. In a flash of white-blue light, he landed on the cobblestones, now human, and stood. But instead of going to the Kishin soul, he turned and ran to Maka's side. Kneeling next to her, he brushed her bangs out of her face gently, sighing when he saw that it was cut up.

'_Maka's not gonna take this lightly,_' he thought to himself, knowing how she got about finishing a job herself, without help. But she was hurt, and he wasn't going to take any of her excuses. He heard a small thud on his right, and he looked over to see the girl coming to kneel next to him, pulling her brown leather bag in front of her. Glancing at her left hand, he saw that she was holding the Kishin soul out to him.

"Eat up," she said. "You need your strength, and I can hear your stomach growling." He frowned, looking down at his stomach. He was pretty hungry… He took the soul from her hand and gulped it down, chewing contentedly. Souls… always his favorite meal. He swallowed, wiping off his chin, and turned his attention back to Maka. The girl was pulling first aid supplies out of her bag, the streetlight shining on her, and as Soul pulled Maka's head into his lap, he finally got a good look at the girl.

She had dark blonde hair that went down to the middle of her back in soft waves. Her skin was smooth and soft-looking. Her eyes were a deep green, and they might have had a little bit of brown in them, but Soul couldn't tell because she wasn't looking at him. She wore a tattered white t-shirt with a black tank top underneath- he could see the strap on her shoulder- and a black, faded, well-worn leather jacket over the shirt. She also had on ripped blue jeans that were clearly torn from many battles over time. Her jeans were tucked into black combat boots that went to her ankles- good for running. A quiver rested on her back, with one arrow left inside. She slung her bow over her back and rummaged through the contents of her bag, pulling out bandages and anti-infection cream.

"Move her shirt," she said, pulling scissors from her bag and cutting the bandages to the right size. Soul watched for a moment before turning back to Maka. He gently moved her bloodstained shirt aside, revealing the wound. It wasn't deep, but it was long, stretching horizontally across her abdomen. The skin around the cut was covered with blood, and Soul figured that she had blacked out from the pain and the loss of blood. The girl moved him over and began tending to Maka, spreading the cream on the bandages and wrapping them around her waist. Soul held Maka's hand, willing her to be alright. He didn't even realize he was biting his lip until he tasted blood and realized his sharp teeth had cut into his flesh.

Finally, the girl packed up her leftover medical supplies, putting the strap of the bag over her shoulder. "There. That should hold for a little while… But I'm not exactly a medical professional, so we have to take her to the hospital. Is there one near here?" She finally met his eyes, and he saw something in them. Something he couldn't discern, but it was there. He broke his gaze and nodded, lifting Maka gently in his arms.

"Few blocks down that way," he said, nodding down the street to indicate where it was. She nodded, loading her bow with another arrow and leading the way in case another Kishin attacked.

From behind, Soul watched her skeptically. She was careful with her steps, but confident at the same time. Why had she just shown up in the middle of the fight like that? And right when he needed help the most… Had she known? Or had she just been a passerby, willing to risk her life to help them? There had to be something up with her, but now wasn't the time for intense questions like that. He had to take care of Maka first.

"So what's your name?" he asked her, shifting Maka so she didn't roll out of his arms. Death, she was heavier than she looked…

"Lexi," she said, glancing down an alley. "Yours?"

"Soul…" he watched her body language. Her shoulders seemed to be constantly tensed, and he wondered why. "And this is my meister, Maka… Are you a meister too?"

"Umm…" she hesitated some, then cleared her throat. "Yeah, I am." She flashed a smile back at him, hoping he hadn't noticed her hesitation- but he had. His eyes narrowed, but he said nothing as they reached the hospital and went inside.

* * *

**Slooooooowly rewriting The Soul Master. And eventually A New Enemy. I split the first chapter right about in half, and this rewrite was still longer than it, so… Guess I had a lot of work to do! Thanks to Horsekid109 for asking me to do this- I'm very glad I did. See you next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2

"We need a doctor in here!" Soul yelled as he carried Maka sideways through the front door of the hospital. A nurse in a long white doctor's coat ran over, looking over Maka's wound only once before guiding the teenagers to an unoccupied room, with only a bed, a table next to the bed, a small bathroom, and a window facing a brick wall to look at. As Soul laid Maka down on the bed in the center of the room, the nurse called for a doctor. Soul sat next to Maka, holding her hand as the nurse spoke, and Lexi looked around the room.

"You kids need to go now," the nurse said, hanging up the phone and coming over to them. "I need to take her vitals before the doctor gets here."

"I'm not leaving her," Soul said defensively, a growl in his voice. He stood, still holding Maka's hand tightly in his own. "She's my meister, and I'm staying until I know she'll be okay."

"Soul, come on," Lexi said. She seized his jacket sleeve and tugged him out of the room and into the hallway, despite his protests to stay with Maka. Once outside of Maka's room, she let go of his sleeve and he glared, brushing off his jacket, and leaned back against the wall as he shoved his hands deep into his pockets. It was only at that moment, as she leaned against the wall on the other side of the hallway that he noticed her bow and arrows had disappeared.

"Where did your weapons go?" He asked, frowning as he looked her over. As he watched, her shoulders tensed. His scowl deepened- there was something seriously up here. And he intended to find out what. After a moment of silence- brief, but long enough to pique his suspicion- she raised her head, her green eyes meeting his.

"I ditched them," she said smoothly. "A while back. How did you not notice? You were right behind me the whole time."

"Yeah. Exactly."

"So apparently, you need to pay attention more."

"But why did you leave your weapons?" He frowned deeply at her, not convinced at all by her claims.

"I left them because I didn't need them anymore. The fight was over, and there wasn't another Kishin soul in the city. At least, not that I could tell."

"You can read souls?"

"Yes. I can. And I know that you don't trust me." She looked away, out the window at the stars over the Academy. "Your soul's pretty easy to read. You're not exactly a closed book, either."

Soul frowned, standing back up. Just as he opened his mouth to tell her off, the doctor- whom neither of them had noticed walk into Maka's room- came out. Soul's head snapped to the side and he walked up to the doctor anxiously. Behind him, Lexi stood as well.

"How is she? Is she okay?" Soul asked, looking up at the doctor. He finished scrawling something on a clipboard and looked down at him, placing his pen in his pocket.

"She's alright," he assured him. "The wound is long, but it's not deep. I stitched it shut, and it should heal up just fine in a few weeks. However, I do want to keep her here overnight to monitor her health and make sure she begins healing properly." Soul nodded slowly, looking down at his shoes as he processed this news.

"Thanks, doc," he said, looking back up at him. "Can we go see her now?"

The doctor nodded and led him and Lexi into Maka's room. Maka was just beginning to stir from unconsciousness, and as soon as Soul noticed this, he practically ran to her side, grasping her hand in his and sitting in the chair next to the bed. His heart raced as her eyes fluttered open and his face broke out in a smile.

"Soul…?" she whispered, her voice cracking hoarsely as she spoke. He nodded, smiling.

"I'm right here, Maka…" he said, trailing off at the end of the sentence. Of course she knew he was there for her. He always had been, and always would be.

"Where am I?" she asked, looking around the room, not yet seeing Lexi standing behind Soul.

"In the hospital," he said. "That damn Kishin went and hurt you. Now you're stuck here overnight. Totally not cool."

"What happened to the Kishin? Did we kill it?" she asked, trying to push herself into an upright, sitting position. However, Soul gently pushed her back down onto the pillow, holding her shoulders to the bed in an effort to keep her at rest.

"Stay down, Maka," he said. "As for the Kishin, you-"

"You killed it," Lexi interjected, stepping forward. Maka's eyes landed on her and her brows furrowed, confused as to who this stranger was. "You and Soul took it down together, but when it fell, one of its claws caught you. I was walking by and I saw you get hurt. Soul and I carried you to the hospital." Soul frowned, wondering why she would lie about that. But then again, it was probably for the best. Maka would get all depressed and force him to practice harder if she knew that she hadn't killed the Kishin herself.

"Who are you?" Maka asked, frowning up at Lexi. She tried to sit up again, only for Soul to push her back down again. She sighed and looked up at Lexi again, waiting for an answer.

"My name is Lexi," she said, coming around to the other side of the bed and sitting down in the chair that was sitting there. "I'm a meister. I'm new to Death City, and I want to enroll in the Academy." Maka frowned, looking her over suspiciously, but believed what she said.

"Do you now?" asked a voice from the doorway. All three of the teenagers jumped a bit, not expecting the sudden intrusion, and they looked towards the door to see Stein standing there, leaning leisurely against the doorframe and casually twirling a scalpel between his fingers.

"Professor?" Maka asked, confusion in her voice. "What're you doing here this late?"  
Stein pocketed the scalpel and stood up straight, coming further into the room. "I was watching your fight with Lord Death in the Death Room," he explained, stopping and standing near the end of her bed. "I wanted to make sure my brightest student wasn't hurt too badly."

"Wait, who are you?" Lexi asked Stein, looking over his stitched… everything. Her eyes landed on the screw through the side of his head and she raised a brow at him, wondering how having a screw through his head and being alive was even possible.  
"My name is Franken Stein. You will call me Professor Stein. I'm a teacher and a doctor at the Academy."

"He's the best doctor in Death City," Maka added. "He fixed up Soul when he got hurt, and my friend Crona after that."

"If he's so great, why did he have to come down here to check to make sure you were okay?" she asked, scoffing a bit. Stein frowned, seemingly insulted by the lack of respect from Lexi.

"So you really want to join the Academy?" he asked her, his eyes glaring daggers at her, though his body language showed his normal calm exterior. "In that case, I'd like to speak with you privately." He gestured to the hallway and walked out, leading the way for her to follow. With a glance back at Maka and Soul, she stepped into the hallway and followed him down, until they stopped just outside a set of gray double doors.

"Why are you here?" he asked, a quiet growl in his voice. "And drop the act. I know what you are, and I know he's following you. Why are you leading him here?"  
Lexi's face dropped from her hopeful expression down to a serious, almost grave look. "I'm not purposely leading him here. I'm running away from him, and I'm just passing through."

"Then why did you say you were joining the Academy?"

"I don't know! They wanted an answer and I panicked, okay?"

"Oh, come on. You're better than that, and you know it. You can come up with a believable lie off the top of your head, now what's the real reason?"

Lexi sighed and looked away. "…I think it'd be nice to just stay in one place for a while. I hurt him pretty badly last time- knife to his leg- so he won't be catching up very fast."

Stein sighed and turned the screw on his head two times, Lexi shifting uncomfortably at the sickening sound that came from it.

"I can see your soul," he said finally, after a moment of sustained silence. "Maka can see them too. And once she figures you out, you're gonna have to leave. Or they'll run you out."

Lexi scoffed. "Wouldn't be the first time I've been kicked out of a city before. I can deal with it. Now are you gonna let me stay, or not?"

Light green met dark green as Stein looked into her eyes. She shifted again, uncomfortable under his gaze, but she didn't break. Finally he sighed and lit up a cigarette, going over to the window at the end of the hallway and opening it so the smoke wouldn't stink up the hospital.

"Fine, you can stay. But don't cause trouble. And if he comes after you, you have to lead him away from the city. And you can join the Academy if you'd like… But I doubt you'll be staying long."

Lexi's face brightened, but she quickly turned it back to a serious face when he turned back around.

"Thank you," she said, nodding to him. "You won't have to worry about me. I won't be in your way."

"Good. Now I have some papers to grade… see you tomorrow. Oh," he said, turning to walk down the hallway, "and you'd better start calling me Professor Stein."

"There are a lot of things I'd like call you, but my mom taught me not to swear," she mumbled, casting her eyes down at the speckled tile on the floor. Stein just chuckled, walking away down the hallway and leaving Lexi alone.

* * *

After leaving Maka at the hospital overnight, Soul led Lexi back to his and Maka's shared apartment.

"We have an extra room," he explained as they went up the stairs. "So you can room with us. And the elevator's been broken. They never fix it, so don't try it."

Lexi nodded to show she understood. They got to the front door and Soul unlocked it, heading into the small but cozy apartment. Lexi stepped in after him, looking around and wondering why the place held the faint smell of burnt fish.

"I'd recommend you head straight to your room," he said, taking off his jacket and hanging it on the coat rack. Maka would kill him if he made a mess, and he knew how much her Maka Chops hurt… he cringed at the thought and continued his sentence. "Unless you want to meet Blair."

"Who's Blair?" Lexi asked, putting her jacket next to his and starting to unlace her boots.

"Our cat," he replied. "She turns into a person and has an aversion to clothes. She's always shoving her chest in my face and begging me to play with her. Totally not cool."

Lexi giggled some. "You love that," she said, grinning as she got her other shoe off. Soul rolled his eyes and grabbed the carton of ice cream and a spoon from the kitchen.

"See you in the morning," he called as he walked out. Lexi smirked, setting her shoes neatly next to the couch, and retreated to the guest bedroom.

'_I am _definitely_ not in the mood to deal with a stripper cat right now_,' she thought to herself as she shut the door and fell face-first onto the bed. It was soft, a couple of blankets folded neatly at the end of the bed. She pulled them up over herself, cracking the window open just a bit to feel the breeze, and closed her eyes. And for the first time in a long time, she didn't dream.

* * *

**That's it for Chapter Two! I hope you all like it. Updates will be slow because I don't have access to my own computer at home (it is very broken), so I have to go to the library to write. Please be tolerant of my annoyingly slow updates, because I do try to write as fast as I can. Thanks, and see you next chapter!**


	3. Chapter 3

When Soul woke the next morning, he found himself to still be tired. Grunting some and shoving his face into his pillow, he sighed and reached up to his window. With his eyes still shut, he pushed the curtain aside, just as Maka had begun to do every morning to get him to wake up on time. He had grown used to the annoying ritual, and he never said anything against it to Maka for fear of the Maka Chop. Yawning and stretching out in bed, he pulled off his blankets and swung both of his legs over the side of the bed. Looking around, he was relieved to find Blair in her cat form, curled up on a blanket in the corner of his room. She had been in his face all too many times when he woke, and he was really sick of getting thrown around the room by Maka when she walked in on Blair shoving herself on him.

'_God, I wish Maka was here_,' he thought to himself as he grabbed his pants and shirt from his closet. '_She usually has breakfast ready by now, and I'm starving. Guess I'll have to cook today…_' Brooding on this thought, a sour look on his face as if he had just licked a lemon, he headed to the bathroom. Yawning again, he took off his clothes and got into the shower, the warm water reinvigorating him as it did every morning. When he finished, the small room was filled with steam, and the humid air threatened to choke him. He opened the small window they had in the bathroom and watched quietly for a moment as the steam flooded outside and dissipated into the cool morning air. He pulled on his clothes, pausing before he put on his shirt and looking at himself in the mirror.

He still had the scar. Maka had been so afraid of touching that scar, and hadn't even wanted to look at it. Although he was glad she had gotten over it, he still wondered if she blamed herself inside, just a little. It had never really come up in conversation, and Soul tended to keep his shirt on around her. Sighing and shaking his head, he pulled his shirt on, grabbing his toothbrush and brushing his teeth quickly. His mind returned to the topic of breakfast as he opened the bathroom door. However, he was suddenly hit with the smell of cooking bacon and eggs. Were those pancakes, too? All Blair knew how to cook was fish, so it couldn't have been her…

'_Lexi made breakfast?_' he thought as he cocked an eyebrow. It was a talent Maka had always wanted, and he often made fun of her for it. '_Didn't think she was the type for cooking._' He flicked his wet hair out of his eyes as he walked into the kitchen. His theory was confirmed as he saw Lexi standing at the stove, her blonde hair a bit damp, but clearly in the process of drying. She was barefoot and had her back to him as she cooked. He took another step and the floor creaked a bit. She heard the sound and turned, then greeted him with a smile.

"Morning," she said brightly, clearly in a significantly happier mood than she had been when they met last night. "Hope you like scrambled eggs." Soul watched as she plated the food, putting two pieces of bacon and a scoop of eggs on a side plate. On a larger plate she stacked two pancakes, then grabbed a fork and knife and handed the plates and silverware to him. Doing the same thing again, she shut off the appliances and made her way to the table, setting her food down. On the table already were cups, a bottle of syrup, the carton of milk, and the bottle of orange juice.

"Thanks," Soul said as he sat down, placing his food down in front of him. "I didn't think you were gonna make breakfast, though, I could have…" He trailed off as she smiled at him.

"It's no problem," she replied. "If I'm going to stay here, I have to contribute, right? Besides, I wanted to thank you for letting me stay. I would have been out on the streets if it wasn't for you." She flashed him another smile and took a bite of eggs. Soul did the same, smiling to herself. Maybe Maka _would_ like this girl…

There was a yawn from Soul's bedroom. He looked up towards his door and groaned as he saw Blair standing up and stretching- fully naked. She turned and grinned at him, waving and playfully pawing her hand in his direction. He turned his face back to his plate, rolling his eyes.

"Clothes, Blair!" he called, sighing. Lexi looked up in the direction Soul had been looking a moment ago and immediately looked away, back at her plate as he had.

"_That's_ Blair?" she whispered as Blair went to take a bath and dress. Soul nodded, stuffing some bacon in his mouth.

"If you ever leave, you can have her. She's free," he offered and she shook her head.

"No thanks, you keep her," she replied. "I don't really want a stripper cat living with me."

Soul smirked some and finished up his breakfast. He grabbed her empty plate just as she finished her food and put everything in the sink. He'd get to washing them later. Lexi stood, putting her shoes on as Soul grabbed his jacket and pulled it on. He knelt to put on his shoes, and then looked up for a moment as he heard a soft scraping sound. He saw Lexi slipping something in her shoe, and he saw the flash of light on metal before whatever it was disappeared behind the black leather of her boot. He looked back down as she began to look up, and sighed some, a bit relieved that she didn't notice him watching. She kept doing things that just made him more suspicious: ditching the archery set, telling off Stein, and now this… maybe it was a knife she was putting in her shoe.

'_But why would she need to take a knife to school?_' he wondered to himself. Something wasn't right here, but he said nothing as he grabbed his books and led her out the door.

* * *

"Black Star, you really need to lighten up on the morning exercise," Tsubaki complained as Black Star did one-handed pushups on the kitchen floor. "We're going to be late again!"

"Just a few more!" Black Star grunted as he continued his exercise. Tsubaki sighed.

"You said that 150 pushups ago," she said, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "We're gonna be late, and Professor Stein said _last_ time that if we're late again, we're going to get a detention!" Black Star sighed and sat up.

"Detention is so _lame_," he groaned. "Besides, something as stupid as that will never stop a big man like me from surpassing God. But fine, since you've got a perfect record…" he got up and stretched his arms, sweat making the star tattoo on his upper arm shine. "Let's go. I want to beat my old record up the school stairs again."

Tsubaki sighed with a smile. Same old Black Star, always trying to better himself… She gathered both of their textbooks and carried them out as Black Star walked next to her, his hands behind his head like they usually were when he walked. The day was beautiful, the sun smiling that creepy, menacing smile and shining down on Death City. The lightest of breezes blew through the streets, and a couple of fluffy clouds looked painted in the sky as they moved lazily over the city.

"_Damn!_" Black Star shouted suddenly as someone came around the corner and walked into them. All four people fell onto the cobblestone street, each grunting with surprise. Tsubaki was the first to sit up and look at who crashed into them, relaxing when she saw it was Soul and… some other girl she didn't know. She had blonde hair, but she _definitely _wasn't Maka.

"Sorry," Tsubaki said, stopping in shock when she saw that the girl was already standing, fists up in defense. Soul touched her arm and she lowered her hands, and then sighed.

"Sorry," she mumbled, then shook her head and smiled at them. Reaching down, she helped Soul up, and then helped Tsubaki stand. Black Star stood by himself.

"Who're _you_?" Black Star asked, looking her over and frowning. Not recognizing someone walking with his best friend, he immediately got defensive, although wasn't sure whether to step in front of Soul or Tsubaki to protect them. He settled on not moving at all, but simply clenching his fists. But Lexi held up her hands in defense.

"My name is Lexi," she explained. "I'm new."

"Where's Maka?" he asked, fists still clenched.

"Hurt," Soul said. "She'll be out of the hospital by tonight, and the doctor says she'll be fine in a few weeks. Lexi helped us out in a fight. Don't worry, man, she's cool." Black Star frowned, looking her over again, and relaxed some.

"Right," he said, smirking. "Race you all to the stairs!" he took off running in the direction of the school. With a shout from each of the students left in his wake, they ran after him. Lexi was the only one to catch up to him, laughing as she ran. Black Star scowled, usually winning this race, and sped up. But both racers stopped in their tracks as a wind blew past them, staring as a kid on a flying skateboard sped by.

Death the Kid, in his normal school clothes, rode past them, holding his twin pistols close to his sides. Looking down at them, he smirked at Black Star, watching as he shook his fist at him. His eyes went to Lexi and he froze, staring at her. She was… beautiful… the most perfect human he'd ever seen. Even Maka with her twin pigtails didn't compare to this girl…

"KID, WATCH OUT!" Liz yelled, but not soon enough. Kid flew face-first into one of the three red cones protruding from the DWMA. His skateboard fell away as he plummeted to the stone courtyard, landing on his back. Liz and Patty transformed back into people and ran over as he hauled himself to his feet.

"That girl," he said immediately. "Who was she?"

"Kid, you just fell 150 feet onto stone," Liz said. "Shouldn't you go see Nurse Medusa?"

"I'm _fine_," he insisted, peering down the stairway as the four others ran up towards the school. "My reaper body isn't as vulnerable, remember? Have you ever seen someone as beautiful as her?"

"No, Kid, now come on. We're gonna be late," she said, grabbing his sleeve and trying to pull him along. Wincing as the bell rang to signal the start of classes for the day, she pulled harder, but he just brushed her off, staring down at the girl.

"I need to know her name."

* * *

**That's it for Chapter Three! I hope you all liked it. I'm almost done with my senior year, and things are pretty hectic right now, so I won't be updating very often. See you next chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4

"Come on, Lexi, we have to get your class schedule from Professor Stein," Soul said, walking toward class. "He's probably already talked to Lord Death about it. That's what they do for all the new students that come in the middle of the year. We don't really get that many new kids this late in the semester anyway, so you'll be kind of a big deal around here for a while."

She nodded as she walked, calm on the outside, but thoughts swirling like a hurricane in her head. '_Great, just what I need_,' she thought to herself. '_More people to know who I am_.'

"This place is incredible," she said, forcing the thought to the back of her mind for the moment. "How did Lord Death get those black balls to float over the school like that?"

"No one knows," he said, smirking. Almost everyone asked about it on their first tour of the Academy. "It's one of those secrets that Lord Death won't tell anyone. He's weird like that."

"So I've heard." She looked around again, watching as the students ran through the hallway to their classes. There were copies of Lord Death's mask on the walls, silently observing the students and faculty as they went about their day-to-day activities. Lexi wondered if he could actually see through the eyes of each mask, silently keeping watch over the school he so carefully created to defend the world.

The school bells chimed, and Soul pulled her into a lecture hall nearby. The class was loud, chattering as they began to take their seats. Black Star perched on the circular window ledge and shouting something about surpassing God (again). Learning quickly to ignore him, Lexi walked up to the front of the classroom to where Professor Stein was preparing a bird for dissection. Its legs, wings, and neck were strapped down to the table, and Professor Stein had shaved any feathers above the straps off for easy access to the skin.

"Stein-" She began, then rolled her eyes as Stein gave her a look. "_Professor_ Stein," she corrected herself, shooting him a glare. "Do you have my class schedule?"

Professor Stein opened his mouth to respond, but was stopped when someone behind him spoke up, interrupting him.

"I have it," Kid said as he ran up to the pair, holding a piece of paper in his hand. Smiling at Lexi, he smoothed out the wrinkles in the paper before handing it over to her. On the top of the sheet was her name- Lexi, no last name- and a list of seven classes and their respective locations followed underneath. Lexi looked it over before nodding and looking up at Kid with a smile.

"Thanks," she responded. She folded it up and stuffed it in the pocket of her jeans before heading up the stairs to find a seat. Kid went to follow her, but Stein grabbed his arm to stop him. He paused, looking back at the teacher.

"I had the schedule on my desk," he said quietly to him, so no one else heard. There was a small, knowing smirk on his face, and Kid's cheeks turned a light shade of pink as blood rushed to his face.

"It's a revised copy from my father," he said smoothly. "There was an error, so he printed a new one and gave it to me to give her." Examining his face, Professor Stein released his arm. Kid straightened his jacket and headed up the steps to the seats, heart fluttering a bit when he saw an open desk in the row behind Lexi. He immediately set his books down there, not even noticing the looks Liz and Patty were giving him from across the room.

"He usually sits with _us_," Liz said, turning back to her desk after realizing that the glares were futile. "What's going on with him?"

"Can't you see? He _likes_ her, big sis!" Patty laughed. Liz blinked, having not even thought of this possibility, and looked back at Kid once more. He was pretending to organize his books, though she could see that he was looking at Lexi, a look of pure awe on his face and a blush on his cheeks.

"…that actually makes sense," Liz said, a bit shocked. "Even though I've never seen him love anything other than perfect symmetry."

"She's gotta be perfectly symmetrical then," Patty responded, a giggle in her voice once more.

"I bet she has a horrible personality," Liz mumbled, turning back to her work. Patty looked up at her big sister, a bit confused, and was about to say something when Professor Stein cleared his throat from the front of the room.

"Settle down, class," he called, and everyone stopped talking to listen to him. "It's time to begin the dissection. Here, we have the rare bird…" as he spoke, he went to his desk to get his tools. Pulling out his scalpel and probe, he glanced at the top of his desk, just for a moment.

Lexi's schedule wasn't there.

* * *

After the final classes of the day had ended, Black Star and Tsubaki joined Soul and Lexi as they walked home to their apartments. Lord Death had assigned Kid a task outside of the city- something to do with a mass murderer starting to become a Kishin. As much as he had wanted to tag along and actually _speak_ to Lexi, he had no choice but to follow his father's orders and leave with Liz and Patty. As the four teenagers walked, they spoke about many different topics, each as short and fleeting as the next. The school day, the weather, Black Star's obsession with being the "biggest man in Death City" (that topic came up a total of four times) before they heard footsteps behind them, fast and hard on the cobblestone street. They all turned around to see none other than Maka running toward them, her long black coat trailing behind her in the wind. Soul's eyes widened a bit in shock, and he took a step forward to meet her as she stopped running.

"Maka, what are you doing here?" He asked, looking her over with a slight frown. "The doctor said you wouldn't be leaving the hospital until at least tonight."

"I convinced him I was okay," she responded, slightly out of breath- although she was very healthy and a run didn't usually leave her panting, she still had the cut and the hospital was halfway across the city. Soul, of course, wasn't at all surprised, but instead a bit angered with her.

"You're still hurt," he argued, raising his voice a bit to let her know that he really meant business. "You shouldn't have gotten up until I got there. You should have _waited_ for me."

"I didn't need to," she argued back. "And I thought you'd be happy to see me! I planned to be out earlier and make it for the second half of school, but convincing him took longer than I expected-"

"Soul's right," Lexi interrupted, taking a step forward toward her. "You could have underestimated how bad the cut was and made it worse."

"But I _didn't._"

"Then you're lucky."

"What are you still doing here, anyway?" she spat, voice dripping with malice- surprising even herself, but she kept speaking. "The Kishin's dead and I'm fine. You don't need to stick around anymore."

Lexi frowned, anger boiling inside her, and her fists clenched. Taking another step forward, she got in Maka's face.

"For your information, I enrolled at the DWMA," she said back, her voice practically an angry growl. "I thought for _once_ in my life that I could stay in one place for a while. You don't seem to have a problem with anyone else around here, so what's your problem with me?"

"…shut up," Maka said, glaring at her and seeming to concede the argument. "Soul, let's go home." Grabbing the sleeve of his jacket, she started to storm off toward their apartment, but Soul stopped her.

"Maka, listen," he began, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. This just got _really_ awkward… he sighed. "Lexi's staying with us until she can find a place of her own."

"…_what?_" she asked, turning to him. "You never told me-"

"You were in the hospital! Besides, she saved your life. I figured we owed her a place to stay for a while. The guest room was open-"

"You know what?" she cut him off again, trying to calm down. "Fine. She can stay with us."

"Are you sure?" he asked cautiously. Just giving up on an argument wasn't at all like her. But she nodded, and although he wasn't completely convinced, he let it slide. Waving both of them to follow and saying goodbye to Tsubaki and Black Star, the trio walked home together, Soul in between them to keep them from killing each other. When they got inside, Lexi silently began making dinner, and Maka went straight to her room, mumbling something about studying and wanting to be left alone. Soul groaned.

'_What did I get myself into?_'

* * *

In her dream, she was standing on a street in a crowded city. The buildings around her were a monotonous gray, and although the sun shone brightly on the pavement, there was an odd pallor to the city. It seemed gloomy and lifeless, despite the people walking by on the street. Looking in a shop window next to her, she saw that she wore a white dress that went down to her knees. The fabric was light, and she could feel it blowing around her legs in the light breeze. There was a golden belt at her waist, and another circlet of gold on her head, as if she was wearing a crown. Her hair was curled and fell down her back like a waterfall. Looking at her feet, she saw she wore no shoes, and they had stayed surprisingly clean compared to the dirty sidewalk she was standing on. Turning away from the window- she had never been one to stare at herself for long- she turned right on the sidewalk and began walking toward the building.

She did this in every dream she had. She knew they were dreams, but they always felt so _real_, and she would often wake up in a cold sweat, hands shaking uncontrollably. She knew exactly where the tall gray building was, and as she reached it, she stared up at it. It had exactly 26 floors, with fifteen apartments on each floor. 390 apartments, plus the basement, and there were stairs to the metal door on the roof. After living in that building for eleven years, she ought to know it inside and out. She pulled open the wooden doors that faced the street and stepped inside.

The tiles were cold under her bare feet. There was no one in the lobby, and she crossed directly to the elevators. Stepping into one, she pressed the button for the eleventh floor, and leaned against the gray railing that surrounded the inside of the elevator as she was lifted up.

'_God, elevator music is so cheesy,_' she thought to herself as she rode up. The tune was familiar. The manager of the building just kept the same song on repeat all the time, so it was the only one that had ever played. Finally, after the doors opened, she stepped out of the elevator and onto tiled floor once more. Taking a left down a narrow hallway, tears pricked her eyes as memories flooded her head. Running down this hallway to catch the subway to school with her brother, meeting her parents in the hallway the day they brought her baby sister home from the hospital, and running the other way, toward the stairs, in a panic as the floors of the only home she had ever known became covered in blood.

'_Stop,_' she scolded herself, wiping her eyes with her arm. '_They won't want to see you if you're crying like a baby._' She got her emotions under control just as she stepped up to the front door of apartment 11D. Not even bothering to knock- this was _her_ home, anyway- she opened the door and stepped inside.

Her mother, father, sister, and brother were sitting around their Christmas tree- the one they brought up every year from storage and set up together- each with a present in their laps. The family dog, Mocha- a brown and black Scottish Terrier- had his head in her brother's lap, chewing on a small dog bone. They looked up as the door opened, and Lexi's mother smiled warmly.

"You made it," she said, happiness showing in the laughter lines around her eyes. "We weren't sure if you'd come. Sit down, dear, and open your presents."

"I come every night," she responded, kneeling between her father and her sister. Her dad bent over and laid a gentle kiss on the top of her head, and she felt tears in her eyes again, although she held them back this time. Christmas was a time to be happy, not cry. At least, it was every year before her eleventh Christmas. Her younger sister, Alice, reached over and handed her a gift. There were four, each wrapped in the same silver wrapping paper. She opened the package carefully, wanting to savor each moment spent with her family, although she knew exactly what was inside. She pulled the top off of the box and lifted the handgun out. Alice was smiling widely, looking so excited to see her sister's face.

"I made it myself! I hope you like it," she said happily, giving Lexi a hug. Setting the gun aside- the original gift had been a handmade wax candle that she had made in class- she wrapped her arms around her seven-year-old sister and held her in the tight hug.

"It's great," she whispered into her hair. She hated it. But Alice pulled back, and her older brother, Max, handed her a small box, no larger than the palm of her hand. She opened this one and dumped out the six bullets into her hand.

"Thanks, Max." She smiled at him. She had loved the bracelet, but she knew what the bullets were for. Or, rather, for who. She set the bullets next to the gun and picked up her third gift. This one was from her mother. This gift was the only one that ever stayed the same. It was a photo of her with her family. Even Mocha was there, cradled in Alice's arms. During her run out of the apartment, she hadn't grabbed it. She wished now more than anything in the world that she had. She smiled warmly at her mother, the thank you she was too choked up to voice shown in her eyes. Her mother leaned down from the couch and kissed her head. She pulled the final gift into her lap- from her father- and unwrapped it. She couldn't remember what the original gift was, but she had found the knife she was now pulling out of the box on a beach in Miami. It had seemed like it was destined for her, with a flawless silver blade, a golden handle, and a silver gemstone at the end. The gemstone seemed to ebb and flow, but Lexi knew it was just a trick of the light.

"Thanks, Daddy," she said, holding it close. "I'll use it well." And she would.

She closed her eyes as she heard the scrape of the gun on the floor next to her and stood. "I'm sorry I never got to say goodbye," she whispered, her eyes welling up again. "But I love you all, so much… and I'm sorry." She turned to the man standing behind her.

"You again," she said, that defiant growl back in her voice. "Do we have to go through this every night? Haven't you caused me enough pain yet?"

The man, shrouded in shadow, said nothing as he loaded the gun. Her family was oblivious. She used to shout at them to run, used to try to disarm the man, but nothing worked. Their fate was sealed. As she watched, five _bangs!_ echoed through the tiny apartment. Five holes appeared in five heads. Blood soaked through four heads of hair and one head of fur- he had even killed her dog. And as they slumped to the floor, the man leveled the gun and did what she wished he had done nearly seven years ago.

A hole opened in Lexi's forehead.

* * *

**That's it for Chapter Four. I hope all of you enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoy writing it. If you have any comments or even criticism, please feel free to review. I try to respond to all of my reviews. See you next chapter!**


	5. Chapter 5

Lexi woke with a start, gasping and sitting straight up in bed. She was drenched in sweat and shaking, and the blankets were a mess. She had been tossing and turning again. She opened the window and let a cold breeze flow into the room, blowing some homework off of the desk on the other side of the room and cooling down her skin.

"This has to stop," she whispered, running a hand through her hair and pulling it away from her face. Sweat made the strands cling to the back of her neck, so she reached over and grabbed a hair tie from her bag on the floor. She stood as she pulled her hair into a ponytail, getting it off her neck, and gratefully letting the wind cool her neck down. The room was small, and seemed to just be getting smaller as Lexi tried to calm down from the dream. Her hands were clammy and shaking, and the silence was deafening. She couldn't stay there, at least, not now. She had to get out. She pulled on her boots and left her jacket and shirt behind. In her tank top and some pajama pants of Maka's that Soul had lent her, she grabbed her knife and left the apartment.

* * *

It was after midnight when Kid, Liz, and Patty returned from the mission Lord Death had sent them on. They had succeeded and flown home all the way from Venice on Beelzebub, Kid's flying skateboard.

"_Finally!_" Liz exclaimed with a yawn, still in weapon form in Kid's right hand. "Back in the city and time for some sleep."

"Yes, I suppose we all could use some rest," Kid responded, a small smile on his lips. "That was a difficult fight."

"Are you sure your shoulder's okay, Kid?" Patty chimed in from Kid's left hand. A small _twang_ of pain echoed from Kid's left shoulder as he remembered the injury he had sustained. It had been dislocated in a difficult attack move against their enemy, and was still dislocated now. He had intended to go to Professor Stein in the morning and quickly have him pop it back in, as he wanted to get Liz and Patty home so they could all get some sleep.

"It'll be fine, Patty," he said reassuringly. "I've had worse injuries. Now come on. We're home." He landed outside of Gallows Manor, and Beelzebub disappeared in a shadow. Liz and Patty changed back to humans and stretched, Patty beating Liz in a run up the walkway to the porch. But before Kid could follow, he heard footsteps. He turned to Liz and Patty to see if they had heard as well, but the girls had already disappeared inside the mansion.

'_Looks like I'm on my own for this one,_' he thought to himself as he began walking in the direction the footsteps were coming from. He quickly discerned that they were coming toward him, and he was about to call out to the person when they collided around a corner.

Both Lexi and Kid grunted as they fell to the ground. Kid winced as he landed on his injured shoulder and held it, as if that would lessen the pain.

"Watch where you're going," he said as he sat up to look at the person he had collided with. He froze in place as he saw Lexi sitting up, rubbing her lower back.

"I'm so sorry," he apologized immediately, hauling himself to his feet and offering her a hand to help her up. She looked up at him, her green eyes meeting his golden ones, and his face turned pink once more. He held back a smile as she took his hand- she was actually _touching _him- and pulled her to her feet.

"It's okay," she responded. "My fault. I should have been watching where I was going. There aren't usually people out past midnight…" she frowned a bit, coming to a conclusion. "Which begs the question: what are you doing out here?"

Kid chuckled. "I could ask you the same question," he said, hoping he didn't sound stupid. Lexi tilted her head as she nodded. It was a valid question.

"I asked you first," she replied with a small smile, crossing her arms over her chest. Kid chuckled again, his arm going back to his shoulder as some pain shot through it. He held back a wince.

"I was on a mission for my father," he said. "My weapons and I just got back. The fight took a while, but we won nonetheless."

"And you got hurt," she said, noticing how he held his shoulder and taking a step toward him. "How bad is it?"

"It's nothing," he said quickly, not wanting to seem like he couldn't handle a simple dislocated shoulder on his own. But she took his hand away to look at his shoulder.

"You dislocated it, didn't you?" she asked as she gently pressed on it. He sucked in a breath through his teeth as more pain shot through his shoulder. She noticed and took the pressure of her hands away. "I can fix that for you."

"You know how?" he said, looking at her in surprise. She nodded, meeting his eyes again.

"I've had my fair share of dislocated shoulders. They suck, but I learned how to fix them from a retired army doctor in Illinois. On three, okay?"

He nodded as she put her hands back on his shoulder and braced himself for the countdown.

"One," she said. "Two." She suddenly popped his shoulder back into place without finishing the countdown. He gasped as fire shot through his shoulder, but only for a second. It dulled down to a slight throbbing, and he realized that she was done. She took her hands off of his shoulder with a light smirk playing on her lips.

"You said until three," he said, frowning at her. She smiled at him more, shrugging.

"The pain would have been worse if you were ready for it," she responded. "Besides, it's over now, and you owe me a thank you."

"Thank you," he said quickly- he had forgotten.

"You're very welcome," she responded, smiling some at him. He gave her a nervous smile in return, his heart fluttering- she was so _pretty_…

"Will you walk with me?" he asked. "I can take you wherever you're going. This city's dangerous at night, especially if you're alone."

"Why, because random guys will try to pick me up? I think I'm dealing with that just fine, thank you," she said, a smirk playing on her lips. Kid mulled over what she had said for a moment, and then blushed. She meant _him_!

"Oh, no, I wasn't trying to pick you up," he said quickly, trying to cover up his blunder as his face reddened. "I was only suggesting-"

"Relax, I was kidding," she interrupted with a chuckle. "I can take care of myself. But sure, I'd love to walk with you."

"Where would you like to go?" he asked, relieved that she had said yes. She shrugged.

"I don't know the city that well," she replied. "You pick. Surprise me." He chuckled and led her down the cobblestone streets, past Gallows Manor, where he could hear Patty laughing, the sound reaching his ears from an open window on the second floor. He glanced up at the window and then looked over at Lexi to see she was looking up at the window too.

"This house is huge," she said, seeming awed. "It's, like, ten times the size of my old apartment."

"I live there," he responded, smiling some. "That was one of my weapons laughing. Her name is Patty."

"You _live_ there?" she said, looking over at him, eyes wide. "Isn't it lonely with just the three of you?"

Kid blinked. He had never really thought about that. Liz liked to stay in her bedroom, and he tended to avoid Patty when she was in a hyperactive mood- which was pretty much all the time. His father stayed up at the school all the time, and slept there often (he had put a bed in the Death Room for late nights). His mother was gone, too, and he only ever had friends over when there was a big party…

"…Actually, it is," he responded. "I've never really thought about that, but it is."

"But you have a lot of friends, so that's good," she said, trying now to get his mind off the fact that he was lonely. She hadn't meant to make him sad. He shrugged, silently agreeing.

"It's mostly just Maka, Soul, Black Star, Tsubaki, and Crona," he replied, and she raised a brow.

"Crona? Who's Crona?" she asked. "I know everyone except Crona in that list."

"Crona is our friend. He lives in a room in the Academy. He's… a bit odd, I guess you could say. He's a meister, but his weapon is inside him, in his blood. Its name is Ragnarok. It was put there by his mother, a witch. He's shy and nervous as well, and often doesn't know how to deal with other people. But we're getting him used to life in Death City. He's going to move in with Maka and Soul soon, seeing as Maka is his best friend."

"Wait, he's going to move into their guest room?" she asked, stopping in the street. Kid stopped as well and turned to her, nodding. "When's this gonna happen?"

"We don't know yet," he said. "Crona is still too nervous about moving from his room. And Ragnarok doesn't like Maka all that much, so he's nervous about him being rude to her as well. It's quite a lengthy process. Why do you ask?"

"Because I currently live in Maka and Soul's guest room," she replied, continuing their walk. He resumed the lead as a cool breeze blew through the city. It was November, and beginning to get chilly, despite being in the middle of the desert. They had their own weather in Death City. It was actually pretty strange. Kid turned his head to her as she said this, raising a brow.

"They invited you to live with them?" he asked, a bit shocked. "How generous. Why?"

"I helped them out in a fight and Soul wanted to repay me by giving me a place to stay. It was really nice of him, but Maka doesn't want me there. She _really _seems to hate me."

"That's unfortunate," he said. "You're always welcome to come live in Gallows Manor with us. Three is such a bad number, it can't be divided evenly. But four can…" he stopped himself before he went into a symmetry rant, blushing some. "You're welcome with us."

"That's really nice of you," she responded. "Thanks."

"We should get you back to Maka and Soul's apartment," he said. "It's past one o'clock." Lexi nodded, and they walked in peaceful silence for a few minutes.

"By the way, my name is Death the Kid," he said after about five minutes of silence (he had been trying to think of something cool to say). "Everyone calls me Kid, though."

"I like that. Kid," she said, trying the name out. "Easy enough to remember. My name is Lexi."

"Beautiful," he said. Their faces turned red at the same time- his because he thought he had been too forward, and hers because he thought her name was pretty. No one ever thought her name was pretty…

"Thanks," she said, smiling at him, though now seeming just a bit nervous. He nodded and then stopped outside of the door to Maka and Soul's building.

"You never answered my question," he said before she went inside. She cocked an eyebrow.

"What question?" she asked, having forgotten.

"Why are _you_ out here so late?"

Lexi nodded and looked down at her feet, and then back up at him. "Bad dream," she said, surprising herself by telling him the actual reason- she usually lied when people asked. "I started feeling claustrophobic, and I had to get out and get some air. That's all."

Kid nodded slowly. "Well, that's unfortunate… but I'm glad you're feeling better. You _are_ feeling better, right?" He put his hands in his pants pockets, hoping beyond hope that he had made her happy. She had certainly done that for _him_…

"Yeah, I am," she responded, triggering an internal sigh of relief in Kid. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," he said. "I'll see you in class tomorrow."

A smile graced her face again as she nodded. "See you tomorrow," she replied, then opened up the door to the apartment building and headed inside. Kid watched her until the door closed, then sighed happily, turning down the street and walking back to Gallows Manor.

* * *

"I _knew_ she would ditch," Maka said to Soul up in their apartment. Lexi was gone, out of her room, though all of her stuff was still there. "I don't trust her."

"Maka, don't you think if she was going to leave, she would have taken her stuff with her?" Soul replied, holding up Lexi's bag and jacket. "She probably just went for a walk or something. What's your problem with her, anyway?"

"I just _told_ you, I don't trust her!" She said, crossing her arms. "She just appears out of nowhere and fixes me up, then suddenly decides to enroll in the DWMA? Don't you think that's just a _little_ suspicious, Soul?"

"No, Maka, I don't!" he nearly shouted back. "She helped us and we're repaying her by giving her a place to stay. If you don't trust her, fine. But I do. I don't care if-" he stopped speaking as he heard footsteps coming up the stairs to their apartment. Quickly grabbing Lexi's bag and jacket from Maka, he tossed them into Lexi's room, and then ran back out just as the front door opened and Lexi walked in.

She looked over both of them. "Um… what're you guys doing?"

"We could ask you the same question," Maka said, causing Lexi to smirk. Kid had said the same thing.

"I was on a walk," she replied.

"On a walk where?" She shot back, and Soul groaned in annoyance. This was getting out of hand…

"Just on a walk. No particular destination."

"Did you talk to anyone?"

"Who the hell would be crazy enough to be up at this hour?" she asked, deciding to protect Kid from all these questions, should she give him away.

"You, apparently," Maka replied. Lexi could almost hear the ice dripping from each word.

"Jeez, Maka, what's with the third degree?" Soul cut in. "She was out on a walk. That's it. Leave her alone."

"Yes, let's leave Lexi alone now," Lexi said, yawning. "She needs some sleep." She waved nonchalantly to both of them and headed back to her room, leaving Maka and Soul to look after her. Maka glared at her back, and then suddenly froze. She could see Lexi's soul for the first time. Her eyes went wide as she stared after Lexi, watching as her door closed behind her.

"What is it, Maka?" Soul asked, noticing the look on her face. She was silent for a moment before answering.

"Her soul… I can see it," she replied, voice awed. Soul blinked.

"Yeah, I know you can see people's souls," he said, a bit confused as to why she was being like this. "What about it?"

"Her soul," she whispered, finally bringing her eyes up to meet his.

"It's silver."

* * *

**Voilà pour le chapitre cinq! ****(That's it for Chapter Five!) Thanks for reading. Any and all reviews are appreciated. See you next chapter!**


	6. Chapter 6

"Souls can't be silver," Soul argued quietly, knowing Lexi might be able to hear them. "They're blue or yellow or purple. Not _silver_!"

"If you could see her soul, you'd be able to see it too!" Maka whispered back. "I swear, Soul, it's silver. It's _metallic_!"

"Maka, it's late. You need sleep." He stood behind her and placed both hands on her shoulders, steering her to her bedroom. "Souls can't be silver and you have a test in that meister class of yours tomorrow." Maka froze in her tracks, stopping Soul behind her.

"The test! I forgot to study for the test!" She pulled away from him and ran to her bedroom, closing the door behind her. Her light seeped underneath the door and into the hallway, and Soul sighed.

"Maka, you're crazy," he called through the door, rolling his eyes and walking down the short hallway to his own bedroom. He went to his bed, rubbing his eyes sleepily, and collapsed into the warm blankets. Blair was sleeping peacefully in the corner, in cat form, half buried under the witch's hat she wore. Her tail waved back and forth slightly, and Soul figured she was having a good dream. He closed his eyes and drifted to sleep.

* * *

Again, she was in New York. Again, she was in the white dress with the gold belt. And again, she could smell car exhaust and food cooking from street vendors. Lexi sighed as she headed down the street, like she did almost every night. She entered the building and noticed _again_ how cold the tiles were under her feet. The elevator music was still just as cheesy as the night before, but when she stepped out onto the eleventh floor, she immediately sensed something different. Something in the air.

She smelled the air. It smelled… smoky. Smoky, something she had only smelled once, when her brother had accidentally lit their Christmas tree on fire when she was eight. The hallway was suddenly filled with thick smoke, and she could barely see five feet ahead of her. The smoke got in her eyes, her nose, and her throat. She began coughing, and threw her arm in front of her mouth and nose to keep from breathing it in. This was _her_ dream, so it must be coming from…

'_No, it can't be… they didn't burn! They were shot!_' She thought as she ran as fast as she could to apartment 11D. But her fears, she realized, were true, as she saw the smoke pouring out through the spaces in the top and bottom of the door. She forced her way inside, the smoke finding its way down her throat again, making it sting with a sharp pain. She blinked quickly, clearing the smoke out of her eyes, and ran to the living room.

The room was engulfed in flame. The Christmas tree was crackling, the smell of burned plastic singeing the inside of her nose along with the overpowering smell of smoke. The presents were aflame, as well as the couch.

And her family.

Their skin was red, blisters making their skin look like it was boiling. Mocha's fur was burning off. Their skin seemed to be melting off, and Lexi screamed when she saw them. But her scream was cut short when she noticed they were smiling.

Mocha barked happily up at her. Alice was giggling as Max tickled her, his skin starting to blacken. Her parents were smiling at her, smiling warmly as they burned.

"Come open your presents, dear," her mother said, extending a hand to her. But Lexi backed away, into where she knew the man _should_ have been standing. There was a man there, but it wasn't him. This man was different. New.

When she turned around to face this new intruder, the flames died. Her home was blown away in a wind, and suddenly, she and the man were standing on a rock, in the middle of a stormy sea at night. Thunder cracked loudly, and lightning lit up the world as if it were day. The rock was cold and wet and slippery under her bare feet, and rain and wind lashed at her, hitting her skin like needles flying 50 miles per hour straight at her. She squinted through the mist, trying to figure out who she was. He had tousled, light brown hair, and icy blue eyes that made her… somehow feel warm, and welcomed. He looked upon her with a kind smile, almost… sympathetic.

"Who are you?" she shouted over the storm, but her voice was lost to thunder and rain. He seemed to hear her, however, and smiled.

"You know who I am," he said calmly, and somehow, she could hear him perfectly fine.

'_He's in my mind,_' she thought to herself, realizing why his voice was so clear, while hers was lost. '_But do I have to keep shouting, or can he hear me if I just talk?_'

"No, I don't know who you are," she said, lowering her voice down to what her mother would have called an 'indoor voice.' "Am I supposed to?"

"I am a part of you, Lexi. I am a piece of your past. I will help you, like you will help the one after you. Now think. _Dig deep_. You know my name."

Lexi closed her eyes. There was something about him that was familiar, but she just couldn't place it. Maybe it was his eyes, or his smile…

'_No. His name, Lexi. Focus on his name._'

"Derek," she whispered, eyes still closed. It was merely a thought, a wisp of a thought in the back of her mind, but it was the only name she could think of. It was the only name that made sense, and when she opened her eyes, he was smiling and nodding.

"I knew you would remember, Lexi," he said. "Now, I did not come to you on a social call. There's something important you should know."

"Why was my house on fire?" she asked before he could continue. "Calix shot my family. They didn't die in a fire. _Why did the dream change?_"

"Because I changed it," he replied. "I'm trying to show you something. I'm trying to _warn_ you, but you're not listening. Think about the dream for a moment, and then tell me what you think I came here to tell you."

She obediently closed her eyes again. The dream… Her family was killed in a fire. That had never happened before. But who was the one to kill her family in the first place… It hit her like a ton of bricks, and her eyes flew open.

"He's found me," she said, understanding now. "He's found me, and he's going to light Maka and Soul's apartment on fire to get to me!"

"Good," Derek said. "Now go. You have only a few minutes before it all goes up in smoke. Make sure you take the knife!"

Lexi had turned and began to run before he was even finished speaking. The ocean was solid beneath her feet, and she sprinted across it. She had to get back to her apartment, and get out the front door, or she'd never wake up. There was a flash of lightning, and a crack of thunder-

* * *

Lexi sat straight up in bed, eyes wide with fear. That dream had been all too real. She pushed aside her curtains and looked down into the street. A man stood there, his features too shrouded in shadow to be discerned completely, but he seemed to be just… staring. At her.

It was happening.

She packed her bag as fast as she could, then grabbed her shoes, not even bothering to pull them on. She fumbled with the doorknob, then finally pulled the door open, running to Soul's room and banging on the door as hard as she could.

"SOUL, WAKE UP!" she shouted through the white wooden door. "YOU NEED TO GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!" she ran to Maka's room and did the same, pounding on the door with a need she'd never felt before. "MAKA! WAKE-"

Maka's door was pulled open to show her, standing there and frowning. "What are you _doing_? It's 2 AM! Go back to sleep." She began to close the door, but Lexi put her foot in it, holding it open.

"You need to get out of the house," she said, voice spiked with urgency. "It's going to burn down."

"What makes you think the house is gonna burn down?" Soul asked through a yawn as he exited his room. Blair was resting on his shoulder, and Lexi ran over to him.

"Derek told me. Listen, grab your shoes and go outside, _right now!_"

"Who's Derek? And why should we listen to _you_?" Maka asked, that ice back in her voice again. She didn't trust that girl as far as she could throw her. Lexi groaned and grabbed her, pushing her toward the exit.

"Derek is someone I would trust with my life," she replied, grabbing Soul and pushing him in the same direction. "And he _told_ me that this apartment is going to be lit on fire in a matter of _seconds_. So I'd suggest you run before you're KILLED!"

Just as she shouted the final word, the high-pitched beeping of a smoke alarm filled the apartment. Lexi went pale and flung the door open, shoving Maka and Soul into the hallway.

"Go!" she shouted as another smoke alarm's warning joined the first. Smoke began to flow out of the apartment, and both Maka and Soul's jaws dropped in shock.

"But how did you _know?_" Soul asked. "You couldn't have-"

"GO!" she cut him off. Suddenly springing into action, her shout having shaken him out of the temporary stupor, he grabbed Maka's wrist and pulled her to the stairs. The three of them bolted down the stairs, Blair now awake and clinging onto Soul's t-shirt with all of the strength she had.

They were the first onto the street. Just minutes after they fled, other students and families began flooding out of the building, carrying belongings and small children that they were afraid would be left behind. Most were crying out of fear. Maka stared in shock as she watched fire engulf her home, yellow flames licking at the windows of what used to be her bedroom. She tore her eyes away as the smell of smoke filled the air, but not strong enough to choke anyone in the street. She turned to Lexi, the smoke making tears sting in her eyes.

"How did you know?" she asked, all hate in her voice replaced by disbelief and sadness. Lexi turned to her upon hearing her voice, sadness in her own eyes.

"I told you," she said softly, sympathy in her voice. "Derek told me."

"Who_ is _Derek?" Maka retorted. "You keep talking about how he told you this was gonna happen. Who _is_ he?" Lexi sighed and looked back up at the burning building.

"An old friend," she said, quiet now. "It doesn't matter. Maka, Soul, I'm sorry about-"

"LEXI!" a voice called from down the street, amidst the general nervous chatter. She turned toward the voice and saw Kid running to them, his arms pumping as he went full speed. She glanced back at Maka and Soul before leaving them to meet Kid halfway.

Surprisingly, he pulled her close in a tight hug. She gasped, not expecting the close contact, but hugged him back, needing the comfort at the moment. She wanted to hold onto him longer, but he pulled back, holding her by her shoulders at arm's length to look her over.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" he asked, his voice urgent and panicked. She nodded quickly.

"I'm fine," she said. "Everyone's fine. Everyone in the building got out in time." Kid nodded and pulled her back into the hug. After a moment, he let her go, a light blush on his cheeks. He was thankful it was dark out and she couldn't really see the color of his cheeks.

"You four can come and stay with me," he said. "We have plenty of room." Lexi's eyes widened at the prospect of the offer.

"Kid…" she trailed off, sighing. "That's nice of you, really. But I'm leaving. Tomorrow morning, actually." Kid's face fell.

"Wait… why are you leaving?" he asked, his voice breaking a bit. He cleared his throat to mask it. "You can't leave, you just got here three days ago!"

"I caused this fire," she said, looking up at him with pain in her eyes. "Not directly, but it's my fault. I have to go before someone gets hurt."

"I can protect you," he pleaded, taking her hand in his. "You won't have to hide from anyone. Please, just stay."

"I _can't _-"

"Yes, you can," Professor Stein said as he walked up to the arguing teens. "Kid's skills are far beyond any student's here. You'd be safe with him. And I'll alert the rest of the teachers to your… _situation_. They'll keep an eye on you." Lexi eyed him, a bit confused. He hadn't wanted her in the city in the first place, so why was he pushing for her to move in with Kid and stay in the city now? But she didn't have time to question it as Stein walked away, hands in the pockets of his lab coat. Kid and Lexi both stared after him, but when he disappeared around a corner, he turned back to her.

"Come on. Let's get Maka and Soul," he said, starting to lead her back to them. But she gently touched his arm, stopping him. He turned to her once again.

"Kid?" she said, her voice quiet now.

"Yes, Lexi?" he responded, keeping his voice down, assuming she wanted them to be quiet. Her voice dropped to a whisper.

"Thank you."

* * *

**Thanks for reading Chapter 6! Nobody's reviewed yet. Big sad face. Please, everyone, review! I really want to know what you all think! (Yes, I have been reduced to begging. I'll even take flames at this point.) See you next chapter!**


	7. Chapter 7

By the time the morning came in Death City, Kid had gotten Maka, Soul, Lexi, and Blair settled into his mansion. Each had their own room on the second floor, where all of the bedrooms and bathrooms were. Surprisingly, there were enough bathrooms in the house for each of them to have one, plus a couple of extra. Down the massive white stairs was the living room, where all of Kid's parties were held, and behind the stairs was the kitchen. It was kind of concealed under the stairs, but there was enough room there for a good size kitchen, so that's where it was built when the manor was constructed. Kid had always found it interesting.

No one had been able to go back to sleep after the fire, so they all stayed up on the couch in the corner of the den (which was another room entirely, through a door in the corner of the first floor). They watched intently as the news played an image of the wreckage of their apartment over and over again. Finally Maka turned it off, and the seven of them sat in silence for a good fifteen seconds.

"Thanks for letting us stay here," Soul said, finally breaking the silence. "Don't know what we would have done."

Kid nodded, putting the TV remote on the coffee table in front of them. He glanced at Lexi, who was looking out the window as it began to rain outside. It turned to pouring rain within a minute, and lightning flashed outside, a crack of thunder following a moment later. Rain streamed down the windows, and she looked back at the others.

"We should get ready for school," Liz suggested, but no one moved for a moment. After a couple of seconds, they all simultaneously went into action, standing and going upstairs to prepare for the day. Soul watched Maka as she walked slightly ahead of him, worried. Even when bad things happened to them, she was never this quiet. It was like she was… _defeated_. At the top of the stairs, he grabbed her arm, stopping her as the others kept walking.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked her quietly, so the others wouldn't hear them talking. "You're never this quiet. What's going on?"

"Nothing, Soul," she mumbled, trying to pull out of his grasp, but he held her firm.

"Maka, don't lie to me," he responded, a frown forming on his face. "I'm worried about you, can't you see that? What's going on with you?"

Glancing back at the others, Maka sighed. "I don't trust her," she said under her breath, so only Soul could hear.

"What, Lexi? Why not?" he asked, a bit of shock in his tone. "Everyone else trusts her. Why don't you?"

"She just shows up, kills the Kishin, and worms her way into the Academy? Then, she somehow knows about the fire beforehand. Maybe she _started_ it, or paid someone to start it, Soul. Her soul is silver, and she's secretive. And she carries a knife in her shoe. Who _does_ that? And-"

"Maka, calm down," he said, taking her hands in his to shut her up for the moment. "She came here to _join_ the Academy. I don't know how she did the thing with the fire. I don't know about her soul being silver, and maybe she's secretive because she has a bad past. People have those, Maka. She carries a knife in her shoe for protection. You need to _relax_." His voice, to her, sounded confident, but as Soul made up reasons for Lexi's actions, he began to get unsure as well.

'_Maybe Maka's right on this one,_' he thought to himself, but then forced the thought from his mind. Lexi was his _friend_. He wasn't going to betray her like this…

Was he?

* * *

Lexi walked quickly out of Stein's class as the bell rang to dismiss them. The fire was the talk of the school, and she honestly couldn't be around anyone who was talking about it. She felt too guilty. The fire was her fault, and she knew it, deep down in her gut. But she couldn't tell anyone, because she would be run out of the city again. She closed her eyes for a moment as the humiliation of being run out of a city hit her. It had happened twice before, and she had sworn to herself that she wouldn't let it happen again. She would always leave of her own accord, not be forced out.

She grunted as she bumped shoulders with someone accidentally, her books spilling out of her hands.

"Sorry." The person apologized quickly, and then jogged off down the hallway.

_'Probably gonna be late to class,'_ she thought to herself as she knelt to pick up her fallen schoolwork. _'Now I'll be late too.'_

"Need some help there?" Kid asked as he knelt in front of her to help her clean. Her eyes met his as she looked up from shoving her work unceremoniously into her bag.

"Yeah, thanks." She almost mumbled, but made her voice loud enough to hear on the word "thanks". Kid nodded as he began neatly organizing, occasionally glancing up at her now-messy bag, and got the urge to fix it so it looked perfect. But he somehow held himself back.

After a minute of silent working, they finally got all of her papers and textbooks into her bag. She slung it over her shoulder and began to stand up, but noticed that his hand was extended in front of her face.

"Allow me," he said, smiling warmly down at her.

_'How chivalrous,'_ she thought to herself as she took his hand and used it to balance as she stood. He didn't release her hand immediately, but after a moment- just a bit long enough to make it awkward- he let her hand go. It fell to her side, and she cleared her throat.

"Thanks." She said again.

_'Anything for you,'_ he thought to himself, but blushed and said a simple "You're welcome" instead.

"So what class are you headed to?" She asked him as she pulled out her schedule. She still didn't know all of her classes by heart, although she was trying to memorize them whenever she had some spare time. Her schedule was almost ripped, it had been folded and unfolded so many times.

"I have a study hall with Sid." he responded, glancing at her schedule as she took it out of a pocket in her bag. Quickly, she unfolded it and scanned down.

There it was. Fourth hour: study hall with Sid as a supervisor.

"I do too," she said, a small smile crossing her face. She folded up her schedule and put it away as Kid smiled brightly. He hadn't known she had the same class because he often skipped it to get some practice in with Liz and Patty. But they had an extra weapons class with Nygus today, so he had decided he would stay and study.

Not that he would be getting much studying in _now_.

"May I walk you there?" he asked, offering a smile and a hand. She returned the smile and nodded, but didn't take his hand. As they began walking, he blushed softly, glancing over at her. She was _so_ beautiful...

He stopped her just outside of the room they were supposed to go into.

"May I ask you something?" he asked politely. She smiled some, her green eyes meeting his gold ones.

"You just did." she replied smoothly. His face turned redder, and he cleared his throat to try to brush it off.

"Something else." He stood there nervously, then stepped back as someone walked between them to go inside the classroom. He pulled her by her hand to the side of the door, out of the way of passerby.

"Wouldyouliketogoouttodinnerwithmetonight?" He asked quickly. If he didn't get it out fast, he wouldn't have gotten it out at all. She raised a brow.

"I didn't catch that." She responded, shaking her head a bit. But her face was pink- she _had_ caught it, she just wanted to give him a chance to ask again- both to redeem himself and so she could make sure it was _real. _He cleared his throat, setting his shoulders back.

"Would you like to go out to dinner with me tonight?" He asked again. This time, it sounded right- not as rushed and nervous. Now the scary part began- her answer.

Thoughts swirled in Lexi's head. If she said yes… he might already be in the city. The man who was after her. If he saw her out with Kid, he would kill him… but she had injured him pretty badly in their last fight. A stab wound to his leg would keep him out of commission for at _least_ a few weeks, right? He had to have it taken care of, or else it would get infected… and she _really_ wanted to go out with Kid. Her brain and heart began having a battle.

_'Don't go,'_ her brain yelled at her. _'You'll only be putting his life in danger if you do. It's not worth it.'_

_'You should go,' _her heart said, soft and sweet. She didn't listen to her heart much. _'This could be your only chance. And he's probably not caught up yet. Take a leap of faith for once.'_

_'Don't go!'_

_'Take a chance…'_

_'Think reasonably!'_

_'Follow your heart…'_

_'DON'T GO! DON'T GO DON'T GO DON'T GO DON'T-'_

"I'd love to," she blurted out, and Kid's face lit up. She smiled too, loving how happy he looked. She never made people happy like that anymore. But if there was ever a time for her to follow her heart instead of her mind, this was it. She was sure of it.

Maka slowly hid back around the corner of the hallway. Now Kid was taking her on a _date_? Why didn't anyone see this the way she did? Her brow furrowed as she made a decision.

She was going to expose Lexi for what she was.

* * *

**There's Chapter 7! Thanks for the reviews, it was nice to finally get some.**

**IMPORTANT NOTE: I changed my username from crazychick14 to sherlywherlylock, which is the same URL as my tumblr account, thus making it easier to keep track of everything in my scatterbrained mind. So if you ever see sherlywherlylock, that's me!**

**See you next chapter!**


End file.
